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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24444115">i can't stand the rain</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluntsman/pseuds/bluntsman'>bluntsman</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>NCT (Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst with a Happy Ending, Love Triangles, M/M, POV Alternating, Unrequited Love</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 09:42:20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,814</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24444115</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluntsman/pseuds/bluntsman</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>based on the prompt: </p><p>“If you’re going to break my heart, can we do it outside?”</p><p>“But it’s raining.”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Mark Lee (NCT)/Original Male Character(s), Mark Lee/Nakamoto Yuta</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>27</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>i can't stand the rain</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>recommend listening to SuperM's 'i can't stand the rain' and read the lyrics.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><em> “I’m impressed by your confidence. I guess it’s not easy to tell someone such a thing.”  </em>He answered as they both looked towards the city lines, the moon being exhausted by the electricity emitting from the buildings. </p><p> </p><p>He sounded as if he knew what it was like to be in his position, trembling on thin lines to ask for something-someone-to be theirs.<em> “Ha-ha...It’s not easy, you are right.” </em></p><p> </p><p>He hummed as his feet started to make their turn towards the other as he began to stare at him with an expression he could not quite place,<em> “You should be careful about being confident if your misplaced judgement is based on information you receive from other people. It is hard to believe that in the three years that have gone by, that you would believe that he will drop all of this to be with you.” </em></p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “I’m telling you what I know best for him.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p><em> “I don’t doubt your love for Minhyung,”  </em>his eye twitched<em>, “However, there is no way that you can expect him to suddenly </em> want <em> to be with you. Based on what you told me, he hasn’t even heard of your answer yet. What makes you think that he will return your feelings?” </em></p><p> </p><p><em> “Look, Mark is indecisive about these things, but he is also someone who holds onto things that are important to him. I came to tell you because I know how unfair it is that you two are together and now I am here, things will change between you two. I’m only asking you that you don’t act brash with him about it when I want to come and visit.”  </em>His expression to the response soured, as he took a step forward and the other took a step back. He didn’t have a response to what had been said, but he couldn’t help and be blinded by the anger inside him at the ignorance that was shown towards him. His build paid off to look intimidating, but rather than intimidating his rival, he wanted to make him suffer instead.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Do you hear yourself? Are you trying to tell me that you know what is best for Minhy-” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Mark.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p><em> “-Hyung? As a close friend of his, you should know better than to judge what is good for him and what is not if you don’t even know what’s been happening in his life. I’ve never heard about you until the day we happened to have met you at the store.”  </em>He inched forward, his eyes searching for the sign to begin his fight. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Obviously, he won’t mention me since we rarely spoke to one another.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p><em> “Now, you see, I can’t tell if you’re stupid or not.”  </em>The blunt answer caused his eyes to widen and his eyebrows to frown, as he began to clench his fist to still his irritation from blowing up.</p><p> </p><p><em> “I don’t think you understand what you’ve just done and what you’re trying to do. If Mark had wanted to talk about you, he would’ve. If he’s only dating me because he wants to forget about you? I’ll be fine with it, why? There was no one already in his mind that I had to compete with. He was mine to woo and date from the day I had asked him out. Your presence, appearing out of nowhere to dramatically claim that you love him? Ridiculous.”  </em>He sneered, as he turned away and took off towards the windows overseeing the entirety of Seoul. </p><p> </p><p><em> “Ridiculous in the sense that you actually think he would return your affections,”  </em>He chuckled, his arms itching to spread itself wide in victory, as if there was even a fight to begin with. <em> “I don’t enjoy my life being an example of a TV-drama, it can be unrealistic and I never thought there would actually be a past-fling that realises he was in-love with his ex-boyfriend. And that’s the thing, isn’t it? There was no ‘ex-boyfriend’ to begin with.”  </em></p><p> </p><p>He couldn’t let his words affect him. He liked Mark. He loved Mark, even when he had ran away out of shock when the younger had confessed to him three years ago. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “You’re not even a past-fling. You’re a friend who stopped being in-contact because he was too afraid to own up to his mistakes. You can’t return his affections at that time? You should’ve told him  right there at that moment. Why are you suddenly coming back to carry out something like this?”  </em>
</p><p> </p><p><em> “I will say that he did mention you once,” </em>He looked up, not realising that he had been looking at his feet the whole time. He was not embarrassed nor did he feel intimidated. He guessed that he didn’t want to look at the man who ended up being the person Mark had sought for over these years. He honestly believed that with their friendship, Mark would’ve known to wait for him. Telepathy really wasn’t a real thing. </p><p> </p><p><em> “You broke his heart.”  </em>His head shooted up out of surprise as the other looked at him with an expression that he wanted to choke the other for such a thing, <em> “You broke his heart; you acted as if nothing had happened on that day and continued to cause this massive nuisance to get his attention onto you?”  </em> He laughed, <em> “Like I said, I’m impressed, not because I think you’re someone who is worth competing for my fiancé’s attention, but because your desperation blinds you. Rather than wanting him to be happy, you’re willing to go back to the past and try to amend things that should be left there.” </em></p><p> </p><p><em> “I will humour you. You can come and visit, I will act as if you’re just visiting for a small chat rather than to confess your ‘undying’” </em> he swooned mockingly, <em> “love to Minhyung. If he returns your feelings, there’s not much I can do. But-” </em></p><p> </p><p><em> “Wait, really?” </em> He couldn’t help but interrupt, his eyes bulging with sudden excitement at the prospect of seeing Mark again. <em> “You won’t do anything to stop us?”  </em></p><p> </p><p>He stared at him with a blank look on his face, a hint of surprise that the man was very deep into this, “Well, it depends, wouldn’t it?” He stepped back towards him, his arms behind his back. <em> “As I was saying, I do love him and only wish him to be happy. If another person can do that, there is nothing much I can do because all you’re going to be in Minhyung’s eye is a ‘friend’. You’re not going to be more than that, which is why I’m letting you onto my property to carry out this plan of yours. If he returns your feelings, of course I will put up a fight. Who do you think I am?”  </em>Was he being played with?</p><p> </p><p>He sighed,<em> “You need to find some closure. I want Mark to live his life in the way he wants to- with me and without having to look back at the person who changed him. It took me a year to get him out of his shell, and to realise that it was because of some guy running away from him? That isn’t worth something to remember and to fall back on. You should think about this very deeply because if he cries or retreats back into the hole I had to pull him out from; him returning your feelings will be the last of your worries. How can you worry about someone else when you’re going to face your own death?”  </em></p><p> </p><p>He looked out the window, droplets of rain splattering against the glass. He had been shocked, but not surprised at the sudden declaration by the man coming into his office. Hell, he had been disappointed at most. The reaction that he sought for was not as explosive as he wanted it to be, but he had been in his office since the early morning and he wanted to get back home - to the arms of his love. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “You need to understand, this is a relationship you can’t just attempt to break because you realised how much you love someone. If you loved someone that much and they’re happily with someone else, will you be that selfish to destroy what he worked for? He could love you, but he loves me too.”  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>He couldn’t back down. He had tried everything to get to the position he was in now. Their former friends refused to tell him where Mark was or what he was doing. He had to beg Johnny out of all people, the one who was protective of Mark the most, to tell him where the youngest was. He understood why they wouldn’t have wanted to speak to him if it had been three years ago, but he didn’t understand why they acted like he wasn’t worth talking to again. People can make mistakes, couldn’t they?</p><p> </p><p><em> “Enough of this talk.”  </em> He uttered as he turned around and walked towards his chair, <em> “You know what will happen, so it’ll happen. You can’t judge people’s feelings if you have never witnessed them in person. Life is the sun and it is full of warmth, but the rain can wash it all away if you’re not careful. Mark is your sun? Don’t let your desperation of this ‘three-year’ confession wipe it away and cause the tears to fall. Your conscience will tell you so, since you’re a good man and all.” </em></p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “I can’t stand the rain, so I am warning you. ”  </em>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p> </p><p>“Minhyung, why are you outside?”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m coming back in just a minute!” Mark yelled through the rain as he whipped his head back, “Hyung, hurry and quickly say what you need to say. The rain is getting heavier.” As Mark shook his head to clear the water dripping down his head, he couldn’t help but stare at his beauty. <em> His </em>beauty. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “If you’re going to break my heart, can we do it outside?” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “But it’s raining.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>He had prepared a whole speech - with dramatic statements, preaching his love to Mark and praying that he had not been late in his response to Mark’s confession a few months ago. He had been nervous and shocked, he didn’t expect Mark to come forward with his confession. But instead of replying back, he ran away in shock without informing Mark of what he was doing, and in the end, they both treated it like nothing had happened. </p><p> </p><p>Now, Mark was looking like (the) everything that should’ve belonged to him. And he had <em> lost </em> him without even trying to get him back. He couldn’t help but stare at Mark with a yearning present in his eyes; how did this man manage to snatch up Mark as his own pretty doll? This wasn’t the Mark he knew before, but he couldn’t help and notice that this <em> Minhyung </em>was also better. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “I-I know it’s been three years since I didn’t give you an answer, and it’s too late. I know! But, a part of me thinks that you might feel the same way, so I want to tell you how I feel now.”  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>As he opened his mouth again, the backdoor of the house slammed open again as a tall figure rushed towards Mark with an umbrella open in his hand. As Mark turned around at the noise, he couldn’t help but feel bitter at the interruption. He said he would let it happen, what was he doing?</p><p> </p><p>“Honestly, you will be the death of me,” he scolded as he held the umbrella above Mark and proceeded to wipe the rain droplets of his face, “You know you will catch a cold, right? Stop being reckless with your health.” </p><p> </p><p>Mark laughed faintly in response, moving closer to his fiancé. </p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> He could love you, but he loves me too. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>As he continued to watch, he understood what those words meant. He couldn’t make Mark choose between his (former) best friend and the fiancé that he’s been with for the past three years. Mark looked happy here; he looked safe and well. He was living the life that he couldn’t provide if they had been together. Mark was not materialistic at all, they would have struggled together through thick and thin; but he <em> deserved </em>everything that his partner could give him. His stubbornness and naivety made him forget why he wanted to chase Mark in the first place - he wanted him to feel special and content. </p><p> </p><p>Mark was content. </p><p> </p><p>He felt special <em> with </em>him. How could he take that away? </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “-Hyung?”  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>How could he take away Mark’s happiness? He loved him; he wished that Mark was happy <em> with </em> him. To be <em> seen </em> with him, but Mark wouldn’t look at him in the eyes. He didn’t look at him in the eyes either when he confessed. He wondered where it all went wrong or moreso, why did it all go <em> right </em> when he wasn’t there? Why wasn’t he there when Mark told everyone he liked someone that he met at the concert? Why wasn’t he there when Mark would cry over their arguments? Why wasn’t he there when Mark <em> became </em>the happiest that he has ever been? </p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>“Yuta hyung?” </p><p> </p><p>The soft voice shook him out of his thoughts as he looked into the gaze directly, Mark’s hand wrapped around the fist holding the umbrella for him. </p><p> </p><p>He understood. </p><p> </p><p>“Um,”</p><p> </p><p>“What were you going to say?” Mark tilted his head as he stared at the man before him, drenched in the rain that was getting heavier and heavier. Yuta realised that at that moment, he still didn’t-<em> couldn’t </em> -say anything in return. How reckless he had been in coming back here to ask for Mark’s hand, when he couldn’t even <em> ask </em>for it. </p><p> </p><p>“I-I…” Yuta gulped as his teeth started to chatter against one another. He stared at Mark and turned his gaze to the wet back of Mark’s fiancé, who was as patient as a gentleman could be when waiting for their significant lover to finish their conversation in the rain with a <em> stranger </em>. They knew each other, but Yuta still felt like a stranger in Mark’s life. </p><p> </p><p>He breathed in a deep breath and returned his gaze back to Mark. Yuta really wanted to cry, but he couldn’t let the tears fall when he had to be strong for the both of them. His past and present self. </p><p> </p><p>“I just..wanted to congratulate you on your engagement,” He grinned, trying his hardest to show Mark that he was thrilled for the couple on their engagement that he had discovered about a week ago. “And I will pay for the wedding fees if you bake me all your goodness! It’s not fair that you tell me you know how to <em> cook </em> and hurt my feelings by refusing to do so.”</p><p> </p><p>“This was what you wanted to say about ‘breaking your heart’? Because I refused to show you that I can bake?” Mark questioned, rubbing his nose until it went red. The rain was getting bothersome. </p><p> </p><p>“You know me, Markie! I like to do the unexpected!” Yuta jumped in his spot, his arms stretched out in the open and he tilted his head, “I’m really happy for you, and even if our friendship has changed, I will always be there to cheer you on! Especially if I still think your cooking should be featured in Hell’s Kitchen!” Mark’s fiancé coughed out as Mark’s lip formed a ‘O’ shape at the statement. </p><p> </p><p>“Hey! My cooking really is getting better, right?” Mark reasoned as he turned and poked his fiancé’s arm, seeking for support. “Hyung, you agree with me, right?” He whined at his fiancé, who was on the verge of laughing his lungs out. </p><p> </p><p>“Of course, sweetheart. I do always ask you to bake when you’re free, don’t I?” His fiancé answered in return, making the grin on Mark’s face widen. He was <em> so </em>beautiful. </p><p> </p><p>As Yuta watched the two giggle in front of him, he couldn’t help but allow a smile to gently form on his face. Mark’s happiness was his happiness, even though it was not with Yuta. He knew he could count on the man to protect him up-close, whilst Yuta can do so from afar. He would unlikely receive the same love that Mark gave to his fiancé. He won’t be able to wrap his arms around his waist and cuddle with him. He wouldn’t be able to smell the citrus scent that Mark used in his showers, nor would he be able to hear the sweet noises when he laughed or shouted in excitement. </p><p> </p><p>“Hyung,” Yuta glanced at Mark, “Thank you. I’m glad you came to visit, even if it’s in the rain.” Mark said as the smile on his face remained unbothered by the rain, and yet, Yuta felt like they shouldn’t be in the rain for a moment like this. </p><p> </p><p>“I really can’t stand the rain.” </p><p> </p><p>He understood. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>endgame isn't endgame! i paired mark with an OC because i thought it would be more fitting for the story than pairing him up with another NCT member. i didn't want to do yuta like that. it's also why i didn't show who was talking at the beginning, i wanted to make the reader curious, but not really sure how that worked out. there are missing moments that i intentionally chose to leave out so you could imagine why yuta's thoughts are the way it is.</p><p>i would imagine that mark's finance is some tall buff guy and mark is in his pretty glory wearing a cute doll outfit because he's such a doll. pretty doll. pretty man. handsome man. love him. </p><p>it's angst with a happy ending because mark is happy. heheheh im sorry yuta</p></blockquote></div></div>
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